I gave in...
http://random-murmurings.typepad.com/
Like the title says.
We walked down to the "Circular Quay" where the famous Sydney Opera House is situated. Across from the Opera House is a district called "The Rocks" - full of shops, sidewalk booths, etc. It was a perfect summer day, beautiful breeze, blue sky, sailboats filling the bay behind us. A jazz group was playing on a stage in a courtyard, and we got something to eat and enjoyed their music. A middle-aged couple got up and started dancing - they were amazing! Then an old lady got up, then an old man, and soon there were half-a-dozen people spontaneously dancing to this beautiful music - blues, swing, etc.A story like that makes me yearn for the coming of the Kingdom - not "pie in the sky when we die by and by" - but "your will be done on earth as in heaven". Amen.
Near the stage, I noticed a five or six year old boy who appeared mentally handicapped. He was absolutely entranced with the music. He put up a fist to his mouth as if it were a trumpet and pretended to play it with his other hand. Soon, without realizing it, he had moved out beside the stage. His eyes were closed and he was playing his heart out on his imaginary trumpet. The sax player noticed this, and the hopped off the stage and stood beside the young guy. When he opened his eyes, the sax player started dancing around as he played and the little boy followed his lead. Then the trumpet player saw them, and he came down. The little boy in between the two musicians ... "playing" and dancing in an obvious state of ecstasy - the audience started applauding and I know my eyes were overflowing with tears to see something so beautiful and spontaneous and glorious.
Then I looked back to where the boy had been, and his grandfather was standing there in obvious delight to see his grandson so happy. I leaned over to Grace and whispered, "It's a glimpse of the kingdom of God."
Of mud n men...I'm a bit worried about the gang bangin'... but maybe that's just my obsession wit sin n guilt n shit ;)
Heard an interest'n quote on tha radio today n shit. A fellow loosely quoted Jizzy Calvin as ho-slappin' "If we were mizzy of tha shiznit of stars, we might have sum-m sum-m of worth, but actually we is not made of tha shiznit of stars - we is mizzle of mud if you gots a paper stack. And we have not jiznust mud in our shoes, mud on our clothes, n mud on our faces, but mud in our hearts n mud in our souls."
Of course tha irony is thizzat any cosmolizzles will tell you that actually we *are* made of tha shiznit of stars cuz this is how we do it. The carbon we is made of (and tha mud too fo` thizzay matta!) is mizzy from elements which can only be bizzle in tha heart of stars n shot out ta tha cosmos whizzen they die in spectacizzles supernovae.
This gots me gang bangin': is it only that we need a new metaphor, ta bring Calvin up-to-date scientifically? Or is it perhaps time fo` a new n more optimistic theolizzles anthropology - one which moves beyond an obsession wit sin n guilt, n rejoices in our status as children of tha stars?